J&K Security Agencies Crack Down on Cross-Border Terror Networks, Target VPN Misuse

New Delhi: Security agencies in Jammu and Kashmir have escalated their offensive against cross-border terror networks, warning that handlers based in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu & Kashmir (PoJK) are increasingly exploiting social media, encrypted apps and unauthorized VPNs to radicalize youth in the Valley. 

Officials describe VPN misuse as a “critical weapon” in the digital battlefield, enabling operatives across the Line of Control (LoC) to mask identities, bypass monitoring, and maintain direct contact with vulnerable young men.  

The administration has stepped up restrictions on unauthorized VPN usage, calling the digital front “as critical as the Line of Control itself.”

The crackdown coincides with a sweeping investigation into cross-border operatives in Kupwara, Baramulla, and Gurez, districts long considered sensitive due to their terrain and proximity to infiltration routes.

Police and intelligence agencies have identified hundreds of individuals who crossed into Pakistan and PoJK over the past three decades. While thousands migrated since the early 1990s, investigators say several hundred have emerged as active collaborators in terror-linked operations.

Officials revealed that many of these individuals initially crossed into PoJK before moving deeper into Pakistan, where they became part of networks engaged in hostile activities ranging from infiltration facilitation to arms and narcotics smuggling.

Authorities further believe these operatives are working in coordination with banned terror outfits such as Lashkar-e-Toiba, Jaish-e-Mohammed, Hizbul Mujahideen and The Resistance Front. Kupwara’s Keran and Machil sectors, Baramulla’s Uri belt, and the remote Gurez valley remain particularly vulnerable, having historically served as traditional crossing points.

Police have already initiated the process of attaching properties belonging to identified operatives. Hundreds of assets have been seized, with more scheduled for attachment in the coming months.

Officials stress that these seizures are not symbolic but strategic, aimed at cutting financial support and deterring families from aiding cross-border operatives.

“Identification was the first step. Verification of assets followed. Now, attachment of properties ensures that those who betrayed their homeland face consequences under law,” a senior police officer said.

Investigators further reveal that narcotics smuggling is a major source of funding for terror outfits. Modern methods are also increasingly being used to push arms and drugs into Jammu and Kashmir.

Joint security forces have intensified surveillance along infiltration routes, deployed additional troops in vulnerable pockets, and stepped-up counter-narcotics operations.

Officials confirmed that properties worth tens of crores of rupees, including residential houses, agricultural land, and vehicles, have been attached under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.

Pertinently, North Kashmir has witnessed repeated infiltration attempts and major anti-terror operations in recent years. Multiple ambushes and gunfights in Kupwara and Baramulla indicate the persistent threat posed by cross-border networks.

“Choking the terror ecosystem means cutting property, finances, and online links as it weakens the chain,” said a political analyst, adding that authorities are determined to dismantle support structures and press ahead with property seizures.  

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